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Many school districts may end instruction early to avoid the expense of breaking teacher contracts

School districts across New York are considering ending this very strange school year a week or so early to avoid having to pay teachers and staff for working more days than what's in their contracts.

Most districts have been scheduled to close for summer around Friday, June 26, but many are now talking about halting remote learning in mid-June. Since schools had to continue instruction through spring recess, teachers and other staff are on track to work too many days in many districts, meaning districts could face major payouts that they cannot afford.

"It would introduce a significant financial burden on the school district if we had to compensate our employees for those additional work days," said Kristopher Harrison, superintendent of the Irvington school district, which plans to adjust its calendar next week.

Briarcliff High School parents celebrate their Class of 2020 graduating seniors with a parade of cars through Briarcliff Manor on Saturday, May 9, 2020.(Photo: John Meore/The Journal News)

He said it would cost the 1,800-student district well over $1 million to keep staff working through June 26.

"Given the challenging fiscal climate we're all navigating, I can't imagine Irvington, or any school district, having the resources available to offset such a significant expenditure," Harrison said. "This is no reflection on our faculty and staff, who have had a real balancing act, providing distance learning for our students and support for their own families."

Cuomo insisted that districts would have to continue feeding needy students, providing child care for essential workers, and meeting other responsibilities during the coronavirus crisis.

As a result, districts canceled plans for spring recess in mid-April and said remote learning would continue.

Since union contracts for teachers and other employees specify how many days they will work during the school calendar, most districts are on track to break those contracts if they don't tighten their calendars.

Breaking contracts would mean paying employees for the extra days worked, unless unions would reopen contracts and discuss other solutions.

Schools are required to operate for at least 180 days a year.

Districts have asked Cuomo's office to clarify when the school year can end, but have not gotten a response, said Jay Worona, deputy executive director and general counsel for the New York State School Boards Association.

"In the absence of clarification, some districts are determining that when their 180 days are up, that's the end of the school year," he said.

Cuomo spokesman Jason Conwall said this in a statement: "We are in frequent contact with education officials throughout the state, including providing guidance and responding to questions. At this time, we are continuing to review the matter."

Worona said that Cuomo's decision to keep schools operating during spring recess may have been the right thing to do, but had serious financial implications for districts.

"Our financial situation is as bad as it's been since the Great Recession," he said. "Given that, I don't think there are a lot of districts that will be staying open and paying teachers for those days. Districts are supposed to be fiscal stewards for their taxpayers."

Thomas Corbia, president of the Port Chester Board of Education, said that board members from several districts in the region have discussed ending remote instruction one week early, on June 19. He said his district has not made a decision.

"It's going to have to get worked out," Corbia said. "If it's not decided in Albany, it will have to be decided locally."

One factor that makes it easier to end the school year early is that Regents exams, which had been scheduled throughout June, have been canceled.

There is some concern that Cuomo could act after districts adjust their calendars.

"If you're not going to tell us what to do, districts have to make decisions without guidance," said Michael Borges, executive director of the Association of School Business Officials of New York. "We don't want you coming back later and telling us it was the wrong thing to do."

Districts are assuming they can stop remote instruction on Memorial Day, since it's a federal holiday.

The state Education Department referred questions to Cuomo's office.

The Yonkers Public Schools, the fourth-largest school system in New York with almost 27,000 students, is still scheduled to continue remote learning until June 26. The district is already looking at cutting 189 positions to deal with a $22.5 million budget shortfall. Officials were not available to discuss the calendar.

Gary Stern has worked at The Journal News/lohud for over 30 years, primarily covering education and religion and serving as engagement editor. He is now an editor/reporter focusing on, but not limited to, education. Reach him at gstern@lohud.com. Twitter: @garysternNY